Fehmi Ajvazi, an eminent author from Kosovo, has shared his book ‘In the Kingdom of Death’ published in Albanian in 2012 in Pristina, and in Romanian in 2019, and was translated from Albanian to English 

Fehmi Ajvazi author

[In March 1999, the Serbian regime blanketed Kosovo with a contingent of 120,000 regular police, military, and civilian paramilitary forces. Just about two weeks before NATO’s intervention in Kosovo began, the region was surrounded on all sides, while pockets of the interior (villages and towns) were hit with arrests, liquidations, and massacres. Kosovo became a reservation. A kingdom called the “Kingdom of Death” established authority everywhere! However, some areas were controlled by insurgent liberation forces, and in some places, Serbian forces couldn’t penetrate. Well, the hatred between Serbs and Albanians was the same, but the bullets were the same too: they brought death to everyone, and it was no problem for the “bullet” whether the target was Albanian or Serbian. I mean, the forces of the Kosovo Liberation Army held some territory and kept it free! But about ten days before NATO planes launched their attack in their battle for Kosovo, Albanian insurgents managed to have the world’s most powerful force as their ally: the NATO alliance. However, no one had managed to master a pact with death. Just a few days before March 24th, the “Lady of Death” was the ruler of Kosovo, in reality, she was the ruler of the Albanian citizens of this extremely small territory! And for the third time in history, the state of Serbia wanted nothing more and nothing less than: the ethnic cleansing of Kosovo. Over 1 million residents before March 24, 1999, challenged “this kingdom” by saying, “Here we are, your power is not the power of God!” I had decided to stay, not to leave. I was a journalist, but also a creator. And so, I had no idea what dilemmas lay in this direction, despite the open threats from the Serbs, and I knew well that they would try to wash their hands of us like Pontius Pilate! Regardless of every situation and circumstance, I sacrificed to be a witness to a time and a history without parallel! Yes, a witness…! And everything I have said and written about literary-historical conditions is in this book – a testimony. Therefore, this book is a source and my personal experience of a time I pray will never be repeated – anywhere. Just as I pray for the souls of those who did not come out alive in this “kingdom of death” in the third millennium! Read the truth about Kosovo…  Author]

-Bet…, Betimi continued and said that Uncle Ramadan had called him from Germany because he couldn’t reach us by phone from Tetovo.

He had instructed him to call us urgently and inform us to leave Pristina and go to him in Tetovo. That’s what she said, and she set the lunch on the table. Oh, Uncle Dan is the first person opening their doors to shelter us before the first bombs fall. Since he couldn’t reach us directly by phone, he’s inviting us (through his son who is in Germany) to come and take refuge in his house in Tetovo. His invitation is, therefore, a clear message and is the result of the alarming circumstances that have developed in the last few days and hours in Kosovo, and around Kosovo. Uncle Dan’s invitation, honestly, somewhat strengthened my feeling of strength, the feeling of hope. “His invitation,” in reality, seemed like very good news in these moments, and a very encouraging gesture. So, someone is thinking about us. And above all, we are not alone as I was imagining.

Then, Betimi had also left the home phone number in Tetovo. I picked up the receiver and tried to make the call. I dialed the number several times, but in vain: I couldn’t get through to Uncle Dan’s house in Pristina either. It seems like the lines are blocked. I tried the number one more time, but the connection failed. It failed, but I really wanted to thank Uncle Dan for the invitation he was extending to us and to tell him that I greatly appreciated the gesture. Contrary to thanking him for the gesture, I wanted to tell him without hesitation that I had no intention of leaving Kosovo. I had already made up my mind to stay with my family in Kosovo, regardless of what might happen. Whoever had the idea of leaving should now be outside Kosovo’s borders.  It’s all our heart, it doesn’t tell us to leave. And it’s not telling us to leave today either. That’s the truth. Even in these dangerous moments, despite the ongoing systematic Serbian terror, Pristina has remained a lively, defiant center. Here, in Pristina, for years and decades, the spirit of various forms of resistance, the spirit of preserving our existence, our identity, our culture, and our education, etc., has been established. Pristina was and remains our “Piedmont.” Pristina was and remains a historical center of orientation and identification for all those who did not accept unyielding subjugation. Everything related to our nation outside of Albania is connected to this city. Not without pride and challenge, Albanians in former Yugoslavia understand Pristina as the “Fortress of the Nation.” Even today, on the day when our lives are practically in the hands of the devil, people not only feel strong but also somewhat optimistic and resistant. Once again, I dialed the landline number of Uncle Dan’s house. The call ended in failure.

Pristina was and remains a historical center of orientation and identification for all those who did not accept unyielding subjugation. Everything related to our nation outside of Albania is connected to this city. Not without pride and challenge, Albanians in former Yugoslavia understand Pristina as the “Fortress of the Nation.”

Shpresa had laid out lunch on the table. Her invitation to sit down urged me to eat some bites, although I didn’t feel hungry at all. As I was sitting at the table, I was silently thanking Uncle Dan, realizing that despite the ironclad encirclement, we were not entirely alone. We were not abandoned. In other words, people everywhere were thinking and trying to figure out how to help us…

A little later, Shpresa’s parents arrived. They had brought some food for us. But we didn’t stay long. We didn’t stay long because everything was becoming difficult, sad, provoking, and tiresome! “It’s over,” I said; the bombings will start. They didn’t delay, and they “left” for their home, leaving us 150 German marks. They left, of course, bidding us farewell as if it was the last time. Tears welled up in Shpresa’s mother’s eyes. I told her that during these days, we all need to be strong, and we must believe that things will get better, in fact, they will turn out as God has written…! They left, looking at us. While I knew it wasn’t a time for words, in reality, it wasn’t a time for any words…

I hope this revised version with perfect grammar and punctuation is helpful for your book. If you have any further requests or need more assistance, please feel free to ask.

Day, 24

An old bazaar in Macedonia

The scorching sun of the season and the day slides like a dinosaur over the bruised and bloodied chest of Kosovo. History hides behind centuries-old terror. Today, it’s the reflection of the genocide that surrounds and threatens us everywhere. Time slithers away like a black serpent. The region is preparing to witness the stage of death in Kosovo. Three or four states have forcefully opposed the absurd theater of real crime that Belgrade is conducting against the Albanians of Kosovo. Some Balkan countries, like ostriches, bury their heads in the barren sand of their nationalist dens. They don’t care. Some of our neighbors secretly curse the Westerners (NATO) who are aligning with the Albanians and pray for disaster to befall them. Orthodox Greek Communists have called on the civilian population to obstruct the passage of NATO ground troops through Greek territory, even though Greece is a member of NATO. Romania has also taken a politically unfavorable stance regarding NATO intervention. With a reluctant will and under international pressure, Macedonia has agreed to host NATO troops on its territory. It is rumored that Macedonians will receive material assistance and political and military concessions in the future in return for this “gesture” of cooperation. Even the Macedonian media, clergy, intellectuals, and various artists mainly follow the government’s “isos” (isosceles) line.

What can be said about some of the Montenegrins? They have aligned themselves with the Serb orders and participate in the Serbian wars.

The anxiety-filled departure of the day intensifies our fear of the night’s arrival. The thin thread of light that separates day from night slowly fades away. The first moments of the evening knock on our doors. Should we close these doors or leave them open? No, we won’t close them. “An Open Door” is the title of my first poetry book, which I published four years ago. We will keep the doors of our hearts and spirits open, the doors of our love, freedom, and future. We have nowhere else to go and nowhere to hide. We carry all this violence on our shoulders as if it were the weight of the world. Minutes turn into hours, hours turn into days. When will it begin? How will it start? And until the storm begins, all our thoughts are focused on the first explosions. Yes, all our hopes are gathered around these explosions. (Continues)

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Published under International Cooperation with "Sindh Courier"